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Pastoral Perspectives

To Whom Is Due a Royal Welcome

During our recent mission trip to Lahore, our team was treated with much fanfare during our visit to the 4 schools and 2 churches. At each location, we would find two rows of people waiting for our arrival and greeting us with the widest smiles. Even though these Pakistani Christians hardly knew us – apart from sister Geraldine Lee whom some had contact with during her 8 years of ministry involvement in the country – they welcomed our team with a red-carpet reception worthy of any celebrity.

As our team members make our way towards the entrance of the building, our hosts showered us with aromatic flower petals. As if that was not enough, each team member was also lauded with a rose-scented flower garland that made us felt like royalty. In some places, the children also presented a delightful song and dance item either before our team stepped into the premises or during the worship service itself.

Through their actions, it was evident that the local believers greatly appreciated our presence and efforts to visit them. Nevertheless, while our team felt honoured by their enthusiastic hospitality, I confess that we were not entirely comfortable with being in the limelight.

For one, we wanted to avoid perpetuating any unhealthy power dynamics to our Pakistani brethren. Although our team was representing Singaporean donors who have generously supported their community, we did not want the locals to consider their foreign guests as deserving of more attention simply because of one’s perceived affluence and status. Admittedly, it can be a fine line between giving honour when it is due and showing preferential treatment because of the benefits one has received or expects to receive.

Recalling the words of Apostle James, God’s people must learn to “show no partiality” (James 2:1) and “make no distinctions among yourselves” (James 2:4). It would be most unfortunate if on another occasion or during the same time as our team’s visit, the church members had neglected some other visitor or failed to notice his presence because the latter was a local with to little to offer.

Furthermore, for those visits that took place in the context of corporate worship on Sunday, the focus must solely be on our Triune God and our shared calling to worship him alone. After all, if God was not pleased to be present with his people in the sanctuary that morning, all that took place that day would ultimately be just loud music and human chatter. When so much attention was drawn to our team just before the commencement of the worship service, it felt as if we were attending an appreciation event for donors instead.

I grant that there are some cultural differences in how guests are to be welcomed in church. Nevertheless, I do wonder if it would have sufficed to simply usher us to our seats and have our presence acknowledged at the end of the service rather than at the start.

Imagine if True Way did something similar to the Pakistani churches because our Prime Minister decide to join us for service one Sunday morning. As much as I esteem our country’s top office-bearer, I would have reservations asking our congregation to stand up and clap for him as he makes his way down the aisle. Surely his presence cannot take precedence before the Entry of the Word and neither should it be shortly after that?

Seeing the efforts that our Pakistani brethren put in to welcome our team led me to also think about our own Sunday worship at True Way. I am always so encouraged by the presence of the elderly who faithfully join us for worship despite some having mobility issues and availability of the live-streaming of our 830am service. They could have reasoned that God sees their heart and is with them even as they tune-in for service. But they chose to worship God in person together with the rest of us.

Likewise, parents of infants and toddlers are also to be commended each time their family succeed in making their way to church and participate in worship. It honours God whenever one seeks to worship God in spirit and in truth, even when there will be moments when the parents are distracted or need to exit from the sanctuary to attend to their child.

On the other hand, it troubles me that there are some who may not have any valid reasons for being perpetual late-comers. As much as they show up regularly for worship service, such tardiness is most unbecoming. This is especially so since God’s people are expected to be living sacrifices (Romans 12:1), offering our best unto the Lord in worship rather than some blemished leftovers.

More than just a matter of time management, I fear that some are taking God’s grace for granted and going about our daily lives with little thoughtfulness or scant intention to glorify God in all that we do (1 Corinthians 10:31). Instead of delighting in God’s presence and looking forward to commune with him, they are satisfied with warming the pews and reciting the prayers.

Given that Christians are gathering before a holy and gracious God, we should also prayerfully consider how our bodies are to be employed in our expression of worship. Even though our posture is not ultimate as our outward actions may contradict our heart attitude, it does not mean they are insignificant or unimportant.

Our Christian faith has always put a high value on the body as the object of God’s redemptive love. Since our bodies are a part of what Jesus has purchased with his precious blood, it must also be brought into his service in all things.

Instead of appearing sullen and folding our arms or putting our hands in our pockets during the time of singing, perhaps one can consider lifting our hands in praise (as described in Psalm 63:4, 1 Timothy 2:8, etc) or presenting our open palms to God, symbolising our humble submission and sincere offering of ourselves unto our Risen Saviour and Lord.

Although none of these gestures are Scripturally mandated, neither should it be dismissed with the reason that “It is not my personality” or mistakenly associated with only those from the Charismatic/Pentecostal background. Even if some may not find it natural to do so, hopefully one can find other meaningful and visible expression of their inner adoration to God.

After all, it would seem rather strange and even contradictory if the lyric of a song speaks of exuberant praise and even mention the lifting of hands, but our body language seems to suggest otherwise. To be sure, we are not to judge one’s heart.

But just as there are good reasons why True Way asks our worshippers to stand for the Entry of the Word regardless of one’s personality type, theological conviction, etc, perhaps we should also ask ourselves, “Why wouldn’t we want to do that which has biblical precedent and is consistent with what is usually conveyed through our body language?” If we truly believe that the great King of the whole world has graciously come to us in self-giving humility, how best can we give of all that we are and have to the glory of his name?